These local smartphone makers, while little known outside their home markets of Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, are among the brands taking it to the South Korean titan on their home turf.

That’s because the typically Android-powered devices offer increasingly robust performance and are often several hundred dollars cheaper than Samsung’s high-end phones, according to Tom Kang, an analyst at Hong Kong-based data tracker Counterpoint Technology Market Research.

While Samsung is still the dominant power globally with 25% of smartphone market share, its lead has been slipping in Indonesia, where Advan has captured 7% of the market and Smarfren has carved out 5% as of June, according to Counterpoint data. Samsung commands 22% of the Indonesian smartphone market, but that’s down from 30% in June 2013.

In Malaysia, Ninetology has vaulted over Apple to claim 7% of the market, while Samsung has plummeted from 35% to 18% during the period. And in the Philippines, Cherry Mobile has achieved 13% market share — just two percentage points behind Samsung. Local rivals are also gaining in Thailand and Vietnam. Apple, meanwhile, has lost market share in some Southeast Asian countries but gained in others, thanks to prices dropping on its older devices.

Many of the handset makers challenging Samsung in Southeast Asia have their devices made in China, and then put their brands’ names on them, Kang says. Some cost in the neighborhood of $100, while others are more expensive — but still cheaper than high-end Samsung phones. Many offer larger form factors and advanced features, like robust cameras and dual SIM card functionality.

Samsung declined to comment on its market share. Efforts to reach the local players weren’t successful.